Using node.js to create IRC bot. Message sends twice despite function only being called once

I'm using node.js to create an IRC bot that asks trivia questions. So far it works great, but I wanted to implement a system that generates hints by providing you with underscores for each letter. As time passes, it slowly fills in the blanks. If nobody gets the answer before all the blanks are filled in, the bot moves on. (If it is not in single-question mode)

The issue: If nobody answers the question, the bot moves on to the next one as intended. The bot then supplies two hints at the same time. Sometimes it just repeats the first hint, but other times it's actually satisfying the else statement and providing the next hint.

I have troubleshooted to verify that the function getHint is only being called ONCE.

I've been staring at this code for nearly 2.5 hours now and I'm beginning to lose hope. I'm brand new to javascript, this is essentially my first time coding in it. Any help is GREATLY appreciated.

EXAMPLE 1: Satisfies if (there is no hint) twice

BOT> Who was the drummer for The Beatles?

BOT> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

BOT> R _ _ G O S _ A _ R

BOT> R _ N G O S T A R R

BOT> Oh man, nobody got the answer! It was: RINGO STARR

BOT> Who is the president of the United States?

BOT> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ **

BOT> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ** THESE TWO MESSAGES ARE SENT AT THE SAME TIME

EXAMPLE 2: Satisfies if (there is no hint) AND the corresponding else statement

BOT> Who was the drummer for The Beatles?

BOT> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

BOT> R _ _ G O S _ A _ R

BOT> R _ N G O S T A R R

BOT> Oh man, nobody got the answer! It was: RINGO STARR

BOT> Who is the president of the United States?

BOT> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ **

BOT> _ A _ A C _ O B _ _ _ ** THESE TWO MESSAGES ARE SENT AT THE SAME TIME

I've done troubleshooting to follow the bot's path. giveHint() is only being called once.

function giveHint() {
    if (triviaActive) { //If trivia is enabled   

        if (!isHint) { //If there's no hint

            isHint = true;

            triviaHint = triviaAnswer.replace(/ /g, '  ');
            triviaHint = triviaHint.replace(/[A-Za-z0-9]/g, '_ ');
            modAnswer = triviaAnswer.replace(/[^A-Za-z0-9]/g, '');
            answerArray = modAnswer.split('');
            totalLetters = Math.round(answerArray.length / 2);

            bot.say(to, triviaHint);

            giveHintInterval = setInterval(giveHint, 11000);

        } else { //There is already a hint

            for (var i = 0; i < totalLetters - 1; i++) {
                giveLetter = Math.floor(Math.random() * answerArray.length);
                characterReplace = answerArray[giveLetter];
                answerArray.splice(giveLetter, 1);
                triviaHint = replaceNthMatch(triviaHint, "_", giveLetter + 1, characterReplace);
                console.log("Replacing the " + giveLetter + " underscore with " + characterReplace);

                if (answerArray.length == 0) {

                    i = totalLetters; //Escape loop
                    clearInterval(giveHintInterval);

                    if (!triviaCont) { //If trivia is 'single question' mode

                        isHint = false;
                        triviaActive = false;
                        bot.say(to, "Oh man, nobody got the answer! It was: " + color(triviaFull, 6));
                        triviaAnswer = "";

                    } else { //If trivia is in 'continuous mode'

                        isHint = false;
                        triviaActive = false;
                        bot.say(to, "Oh man, nobody got the answer! It was: " + color(triviaFull, 6));
                        triviaAnswer = "";
                        doTrivia(); //Ask a new question

                    }
                }
            }

            bot.say(to, triviaHint);

        }
    }
}

doTrivia() - *This function finds a random song from a database of songs and asks a question about it

function doTrivia() {
    if (!triviaRestricted) {

        //New question, restart the hint timer
        if (giveHintInterval) {
            clearInterval(giveHintInterval);
        }

        for (var i=0;i!=1;i) {
                getRandomLine('shuffle.txt');
                var shufflearray = shuffled.split(",");
                var submitter = shufflearray[0];
                var shufArtist = shufflearray[1];
                var shufTitle = shufflearray[2];
                var shufLink = shufflearray[3];

                if (shufArtist && shufTitle) {
                    triviaActive = true; //Trivia is now active
                    i=1; // escape loop
                    var max = 2;
                    var min = 1;
                    var trivRandom = Math.floor(Math.random()*(max-min+1)+min);
                    isHint = false;

                    if (trivRandom == 1) {
                        triviaQuestion = "Who is the artist of "+color(shufTitle,12)+"?";
                        bot.say(to,triviaQuestion);
                        triviaAnswer = shufArtist;
                        triviaFull = shufArtist+" - "+shufTitle;
                        giveHint();
                    } else {
                        triviaQuestion = "Can you name this song by "+color(shufArtist,12)+"?";
                        triviaFull = shufArtist+" - "+shufTitle;
                        triviaAnswer = shufTitle;
                        bot.say(to, triviaQuestion);
                        giveHint();
                    }
                }
        }
    } else {bot.notice(from, "Trivia is currently disabled.");}
}